Vehicle suspension



Aug. &o,193s. 2,128,756

LOUIS-EUGENE-WIDOLT MONTROSE-OSTER VEHICLE SUSPENSION A Aug. 3o, 1938. 2,128;756

LOUIS-EUGENE-WIDOLT MONTROSE-osTER V VEHICLE SUSPENSION Filed Dec. 10, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 /ff fa v /4' z 14 2 2 f FIB@ 'Patented Aug. 3Q, 1938 ,Y l' 'l PflizN'r4 oFFicE l VEHICLE SUSPENSION Louis-Eugne-Widolt ,Montrose-Oster, Karlsbad, Czechoslovakia, assigner of one-half to the rm Pollopas yPatents Ltd., London,

Application December 10,

In Germany December 14,

England 1932, Serial No. 646,698 ,1931

s claims. (c1. M-'45s) The subject of this invention is an improved suspension vfor vehicles, constituting in effect a floating suspension of the vehicle body.

According to the invention the under-frame of the vehicle body is suspended at two points located in the line of the central longitudinal axisof the wheeled structure irrespective of the nature of the wheeled structure. In practice, the bearing surfaces of theV wheeled structure and theV corresponding bearing surfaces of the vehicle body are formed as parts of Vspheres `(balls and sockets), the centres of curvature of which constitute virtual supporting points or Y fulcra of suspension. In this connection it is immaterial whether the bearing faces Vof the ball and socket element-s are located above or below the virtual supporting points, as the location is more orA less a matter of convenience.

The new suspension acts after the fashion of `a cradle, swaying on the nimaginary line con necting the above `mentioned ,fulcra as aflongitudinal axis. All the stresses duerto ythe Weight, tension, shock and the vlike are confined to a single plane, namely, the ,vertical Vcentrallongitudinal plane. Torsional stresses are not experienced with the two-point suspension. As the centre of gravity is located beneath the line connecting the virtual supporting or suspension points, when travelling over curves or bends, the suspended portion of the vehicle automatically rocks through an angle depending on the actual speed. Shocks and jerks external to the central longitudinal plane can noy longer act directly on the suspended portion of the vehicle. on the other hand, the positionvof the centre of gravity relatively to the line connecting the virtual supporting points practically allows travel over curves at any desired speed, irrespective of whether there is no super-elevation or too great or too small a super-elevation of the track.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly in section, of a railway car built according to this invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan View of the same,

Fig. 3 is a section on the line A-B of Fig. l,

Fig. 4 the same section as shown in Fig. 3, showing the vehicle traveling over a right-hand curve. Y

Figs. 5, 6 and '7 detail views on an enlarged scale of certain parts of the Vehicle.

Fig. v8 is a partly elevational and partly sectional view of a railway box-car moving over a straight track,

' sequence of the two-point suspension. l

Fig. 9 asimilar 'view of the same moving over a left-hand curve, and

Fig. l0 a fractional side-elevational View of the same.

Referring to the drawings, I, 2, 3 and 4 repre- 5 sent the sets of wheels of the bogies which are otherwise not shown in detail. Each bogie is provided with pivots 5 and 6. On the pivots 5 and 6 rests the beamlike underframe 1. The front and rear ends of the under-frame are pro- 10 vided with central buiers 8, 9. At the location of the pivots the member 1 is arched to accommodate the pivots. The vehicle body proper Il is supported on cross beams I0 in the usual w manner. I2 denotes the bearing portion of the l5 member 'I presenting a ball socket I3. I4 denotes the complementary ball portion of the pivot 5. I5 represents the virtual suspension or supporting points. I6 denotes the vcenter of gravity of the superstructure without load.

The parts I2', I3', and Illv of Figs. 6-8 correspondto'the parts I2, I3 and I4 of Fig. 5;

It islalso ossible so to construct the two# point suspension that the-centre of gravity of the body is located above the line connecting the virtual supporting points, for example, by means of a freely suspended pendulous member acting on a control device operated by compressed air or the like.

The invention is also capable of embodiment ,30 in other constructions in winch the vehicle under-frame is supported by the wheeled structure at two points only.

As is understood, it is possible to provide any suitable arrangement of linkages between the under-frame and the wheeled structure, which linkages may serve, for example, for the control of auxiliary ttings or the like. In this respect there is no departure from the principle 0 Vof the invention provided that the underi'rame and the wagon body are not prevented from ad-V justing themselves directly or indirectly under the action of gravity which is a necessary conr Although the drawings show the under-frame 4') as being supported by means of balls and sockets, the bearing faces may be formed as rolling faces. It is alsopossible to provide roller bearings or point bearings at the points of suspension. Also the use of ball bearing systems is not excluded. Although the drawings show the pivots supporting the under-frame as constituted by bal1= shaped heads, it is obvious that pivot members with ro11ershaped heads may be used and that 55 whole body comprising underframe andsupe'r-M structure may swing freely about the axis constituted by the imaginary line connectingsaid supporting means, said underframe being con-v siderably heavier Vthan said superstructure so as to lower the center of gravity suflicientlyf to prevent, for practical purposes, thel tipping yover of said body, without the necessity of additional means confining its free swinging movement.

2. A vehicle, particularly for railways, comprising a body and a plurality of independently pivoted wheel-ed bogies supporting said body, an underframe for said body, a superstructure rigidly connected to said underframe, and means for suspending said underframe overy the Said wheeled structure at two points only, located within the space encompassed by saidv under-Y frame, in the central vertical longitudinalpl'ane of said vehicle, in" such a manner that the said body may swing freely about the axis constitutedA by the imaginary line connecting said suspension means, said underframe being considerably heavier than said superstructure so as to lower the center of gravity sufliciently to prevent, for practical purposes,A the tipping over of said body, without the necessity of additional means conining its free swinging movement.

3. A railway vehicle as claimed'in claim l, in which the underframe is supported on the wheeled structure systemby'means of twoV pairs of ball and socket joints the center of each of which constitutes a virtual supportingy point within the space encompassedbj said-under frame, in the central vertical longitudinal plane of said vehicle, in such a manner that said body may swing freely about the axis constituted by the imaginary line connecting said virtual supporting points independent of the angle formed by the longitudinal axis of' the bogie With the longitudinal axis of the body. Y

4. A railway vehicle as claimed in claim 2, in which the underframe is suspended over the wheeled rstructure system by means `of only two sets'of ball and socket joints the center of each of which constitutes a virtual suspension point located Within the space encompassed by said underframe, in such a manner that the said ,b'ody mayr swing freely about the axis constituted bythe imaginary line connecting said Virtual `suspension points independent of the angle formed vby the longitudinal axis of the bogie with the longitudinal axis of the body.

5. A standard railway Vehicle as: claimed in *claim 2, in which the underframe is suspended over theV wheeled structure system by means of two sets of Vball and socket joints having bearing faces located above the virtual suspension points constituted by the centers of said joints in such Y a manner that the said body may swing freely about the axis constituted by the imaginary line connecting said virtual suspension pointsindependent of the angle formed by the longitudinal axis of the bogie with the longitudinal axis of the body. f

6. A- railway Vehicle as claimed in claim 1, in which the underframe is supported over the Wheeled structure by means of balland socket joints located within the space encompassed by said underframerin the central vertical longitudinal plane of said vehicle, said balls and sockets having bearing surfaces located below the virtual supporting points constituted by the centers of said joints so that the said body may swing freely Vabout the axis constituted by the imaginary line connecting said virtual supporting points independent of the angle formed'by the :longitudinal axis of the bogie with the longitudinal axis of the body.

LOos-EUGNE-w'IDoLT MoNTRosE-osTER. 

